Real Estate News 05/16/08
MORTGAGE RATES
Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down this week to their lowest point in a month, 6.01 percent, a spot of welcome news to would-be home buyers.
HOUSING STARTS
Construction of new homes in the U.S. posted the biggest increase in more than two years in April, rising by 8.2 percent. The unexpected strength came from a huge increase in apartment construction.
REAL ESTATE FORECAST
Home sales and prices throughout most of the U.S. are set to improve in the second half of 2008 and the recovery will vary by market, according to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. He blamed most of the housing market softness on the "subprime mess."
HOUSING AID
U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, (D-Conn.), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, postponed action until next week on a housing aid package that could help half a million struggling borrowers get FHA-backed mortgages. But he says that negotiators within the Senate are close to a bipartisan deal.
MORTGAGE QUALIFICATION TO GET EASIER
Fannie Mae says it is doing away with higher downpayment requirements for borrowers in distressed real estate markets. The government-sponsored mortgage financier said Friday it will require downpayments of between 3 percent and 5 percent for all loans that it guarantees. That replaces a December policy requiring a higher downpayment if the loan was for a home in a market with declining real estate prices. Washington-based Fannie says the move is part of its effort to help resuscitate the flagging mortgage market.
Source: Associated Press
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